Maybe you were one of the lucky 2,008 that got a pair of the original all carbon fiber Nike Mercurial Vapor SL cleats for $400…or you paid $1,000 to get a pair today. You’ve got the CF kicks, but you know what’s missing, right? Carbon fiber shin guards of course! Luckily a couple months ago Nike released the Mercurial Blade, an all carbon fiber shin guard, solely so you can match.
Just kidding, there’s some great benefits to these shin guards, of course the main one being the extreme light weight, and dashingly good looks. Aside from being light weight, from the reviews I’ve read, they are very comfortable. The inside has laser etched foam channels to wick away moisture:
Nike uses a dual-layer Poron foam for better impact absorption, and it includes a seamless Dri-FIT sleeve for breathability. They are also NOSCAE certified. Check out what one reviewer (stick103) from Soccer.com had to say:
these things are sick!!!!!!! i love them i got them a couple of weeks ago and played several games in them. the are light and extremlly strong! they also come with sleeves which have some sort of material that comfortably sticks to your legs which gets rid of the annoying tape. the sleeves also have a pouch so the guard isnt actually touching your leg. But overall i love them the only problem is coming up with the money lol. but once you have them they will definatley last!! SO GO FOR IT!!!!!!!!!!!
As you would expect, they don’t come cheap, expect to pay $100 to wrap your shins with a bit of CF.
Videos
Here’s a video of somebody that had just purchased them and opened them up, it gives you a good idea of what you can expect:
Here’s the highlight reel that Nike created themselves, which shows you all of the benefits:
Related Links
- Nike’s product page
- Check out our post on the carbon fiber Nike Mercurial Vapor SL cleats
- Buy these on Soccer.com
- Look for these on Amazon
- Look for these on eBay
[Thanks Joe! – Also SoccerBible.com for a picture]